Oct. 30, 2008

Romeoville, Ill. -Many soccer teams can attribute their success to a few individuals, but the Lewis University men's soccer team truly makes a team effort, as the No. 16 Flyers are currently 14-1-1 on the season and 9-1-1 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play.

The GLVC coaching fraternity took notice of the Flyers' performance on the pitch and named a Lewis-record eight players to either the All-GLVC First, Second or Third Team. No. 1 Rockhurst recorded the second-most players named with six total student-athletes. Lewis' previous record of seven players was set back in 2001, when the Flyers finished 10th in the nation with a record of 20-1-1.

"It's a testament to the hard work that the team has put in," Lewis University head men's soccer coach Evan Fiffles said. "We've done well this year, but now it's crunch time (heading into the GLVC Tournament)."

Senior midfielder Cory Mastey (Tinley Park, Ill./Andrew) earned postseason honors for the third-straight season, as he was named to the All-GLVC First Team, along with junior forward Nestor Hernandez (Berwyn, Ill./Morton West). Both are tied for the team-lead in goals scored (10) and total points (24).

Lewis goaltender Anthony Szymel (Naperville, Ill./Naperville North) was named to the All-GLVC Second Team for the second-straight season. As a sophomore Szymel earned first-team honors. Szymel has been nearly flawless as he has a record of 14-1-1 and a goals-against-average of 0.58 on the season, which is good for fifth in the country. His save percentage of 85.9% is also sixth best in the NCAA.

Joining Szymel on the second team are sophomore midfielder Mardoche Beya (Cincinnati, Ohio/Princeton) and junior defender Joey De Francesco (Bloomingdale, Ill./Lake Park). Beya, who was a third-team selection in 2007, is third on the squad with five goals and is tied for third overall with 11 points on the season. De Francesco has scored goals in the Flyers' last two contests and is tied for fourth on the squad with three tallies.

Lewis midfielder Jose Ibarra (Romeoville, Ill./Romeoville) was named to the All-GLVC Third Team, as he has found the back of the net three times this season and has a total of seven points on the campaign. The Romeoville, Ill., native is joined on the squad by defenders Mark Switalski (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) and sophomore Zac Bond (Decatur, Ill./MacArthur).

Switalski, Bond and DeFrancesco have been the linchpins for the Lewis defense, as opponents are averaging just 0.55 goals-per-game against the Flyers.

Lewis opens GLVC Tournament play on Sunday (Nov. 2) afternoon, as the No. 2 seeded Flyers welcome No. 7 Bellarmine to Lewis University Soccer Field for a 12 p.m. showdown.

A Catholic University sponsored by the De La Salle Christian Brothers, Lewis offers nearly 80 undergraduate majors and programs of study, accelerated degree completion options for working adults, various aviation programs and 22 graduate programs in nine fields. The mid-sized university is being honored for the fifth consecutive year by The Princeton Review and U.S. News & World Report. For more information please visit www.lewisu.edu. ##LEWIS##